Queen of Poisons. Where do you go from there? And names like that aren’t usually given away, you have to earn them. So how exactly did aconitine receive this highest honor? By being a bad ass, of course.

The genus Aconitum is comprised of over 200 species of flowering plants, and grow in damp and part-shade areas throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. They are perennials (they will grow back on their own year after year), seem to grow well in mountainous areas, and have the coolest common names.

One such name is Wolfsbane, and it is believed it got its name from the idea that arrows dipped in an Aconitum concoction would kill wolves. Later the common name changed to Monkshood, as it resembled hoods that monks wore in the middle ages. That probably didn’t need an explanation. And today it is also referred to as Devil’s Helmet, I guess to suggest it looks like a hat and is pretty wicked. And that wickedness comes from the poison called aconitine.